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Reward for school

improvement

REWARDING IMPROVEMENT, SO EVERY SCHOOL BECOMES A GREAT SCHOOL

The Gillard Labor Government will provide reward payments to the schools that deliver
the greatest improvements across a range of areas. This will help drive excellence in
every school and better results for every child.
Individual Australian primary schools will receive $75,000 if they show the most
improvement and high schools will receive $100,000. Areas covered will include:
 School attendance.
 Literacy and numeracy performance.
 Year 12 attainment and results.
 Post-school destination information, such as the number of students going
onto further education, training or work.

The Reward for School Improvement program will provide an additional incentive for
schools to improve in the areas that matter most to children and their parents.
Reward payments will be provided for 500 schools in 2013, based on improvement in
the 2012 school year, and will be provided to 1000 schools based on improvement in
2013. Principals and school communities will determine the best use of their reward
payments, to sustain and drive further improvement.
Why do we need reward payments for schools that improve?
At the core of the Gillard Labor Government’s plan to deliver a world class education
system is the need for better outcomes at each and every school across the country.
Parents and the Australian community now have more information about school
performance through the MySchool website. This has started a new national
conversation about school performance.
While more than 90 per cent of Australian students in years 3, 5, 7 and 9 are performing
at or above the national minimum standards in literacy and numeracy, there is still a
cohort of students in each year level that are not meeting benchmarks.

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Parents and the community rightly expect that we will put in place a comprehensive
plan to drive greater school improvement, and ensure that every individual child
receives the learning they need. This is particularly important for schools that may not
be delivering the current outcomes their students deserve.
This reform represents the next step in Federal Labor’s plan to drive greater school
improvement by rewarding principals and school communities who put in the hard work
and generate significantly better results for their students.
This reform will help create a school system that is geared towards improvement and
results. This initiative is part of the Gillard Labor Government’s commitment to a world
class education system, so every Australian student reaches their full potential.
How will this initiative work?
To implement these reforms a new Office of National School Evaluation, within the
Australian Curriculum and Reporting Authority, will develop a comprehensive National
School Improvement Framework.
This will be shaped and informed by a Steering Group that will consist of representatives
from each of the major school systems, principal, teacher and parent representatives, as
well as data and measurement experts.
The draft School Improvement Framework will be released in the second half of 2011,
for full public consultation, and will be finalised in 2012. This process will help ensure
that the School Improvement Framework is independent, transparent and equitable.
From 2013 each school will receive a comprehensive assessment in line with the School
Improvement Framework, and will submit a school self-evaluation report.
The self-evaluation report will include information about other important factors that
contribute to school performance – such as the level of parental and community
engagement, the range of extra-curricular and support activities, and will include case
studies, teacher, parent and student feedback.
Both the assessment and self-evaluation will be used to determine which schools receive
reward payments.
The first 500 reward payments will be based on interim indicators of performance and
improvement in the 2012 school year, and will be made in early 2013. This will include
275 reward payments for primary schools and 225 for senior schools.
The new system will be fully operational from 2013, so that from 2014 reward payments
can be provided each year to 1,000 schools – 550 primary schools and 450 high schools.
These payments will be distributed across State and Territories, depending on their
proportion of schools at each level.
What will this mean for schools?
This means that schools that put in the time and effort and generate significant
improvement in their results will be rewarded for that achievement.
From 2013, when the school improvement framework is fully operational, 1,000 schools
will benefit from reward payments of either $75,000 or $100,000 based on their
performance in the 2013 school year. This reward payment will be used by each

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individual school in a way that best supports their work, so they can sustain and drive
further improvements. For example, schools might employ a literacy coach, purchase
new equipment and technology, or provide a greater range of extra-curricular activities.
All schools will also benefit from the comprehensive evaluation framework. Each school
will receive an assessment against the quality indicators each year. This will help schools
identify their strengths and weaknesses, and develop a comprehensive school
improvement strategy.
What will this mean for students?
Students will benefit from attending better quality schools with a greater focus on
results and improvement. This will help ensure that every child receives a high quality
education that equips them with the skills they need to successfully participate in our
community and economy.
What will this mean for parents?
Parents will benefit from knowing that each and every school is geared towards
improvement and excellence. Parents will also be able to contribute to each school’s
self-evaluation and will have a greater role in providing feedback and helping the school
improve.
Financial Implications ($m, underlying cash balance)
In total $388 million will be provided over five years in reward payments to schools from
2012-13. Over the current forward estimates the cost of this initiative is $164.7 million.
2010-11 2011-12 2012-13 2013-14 Total1
-5.1 -16.9 -49.7 -92.9 -164.7

The cost of this new policy will be fully offset over the forward estimates, consistent
with the Gillard Labor Government’s commitment to return the Budget to surplus in
three years.
Labor’s record
The Gillard Labor Government has taken unparalleled action to build a world class
education system, so every Australian child can reach their full potential.
This includes an unprecedented investment of $63.7 billion in Australian schools over
four years, almost double the amount provided by the former Liberal-National Coalition
Government.
We are delivering a national school curriculum to equip young Australians with the skills,
knowledge, and capabilities they need to effectively engage and prosper in society, and
thrive in the information-rich workplaces of the future.
We have established the MySchool website which provides nationally comparable data
on school performance for the first time ever – providing transparent information on
each school’s literacy and numeracy results. The MySchool website has had over three

1
Totals may not sum due to rounding.

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million visits, and has created a new national conversation about school performance
and student outcomes.
And we are providing $2.6 billion through the Smarter Schools National Partnership
Agreements to drive better student results by giving low-SES schools additional
resources, driving literacy and numeracy improvements, and raising the quality of
teaching in our classrooms.
We have laid the foundations for a world class education system and the Gillard Labor
Government is determined to continue driving improved student outcomes, so all
Australian children are equipped with the skills they need for a successful future.

THE COALITION’S RECORD

As a former Cabinet Minister, Tony Abbott was part of the Coalition Government that:
 Neglected schools, investing only $33 billion over four years. The Gillard Labor
Government is providing $63.7 billion over four years – almost double this amount.
 Talked about a national curriculum but failed to deliver.
 Focused on putting flagpoles in schools, not on improving outcomes for students.
If he is elected Prime Minister, Mr Abbott has already made clear that he would cut
almost $3.2 billion from the education system. This includes cutting the $425 million
Teacher Quality National Partnership which in currently delivering:
 Increased local decision making in schools across the country including the popular
Independent Public Schools trial in Western Australia with 34 schools commencing this
year.
 High achieving non-education university graduates to the most disadvantaged secondary
schools through the Teach for Australia program.
 New Teaching Excellence scholarships for pre-service and existing teachers.
Mr Abbott’s cuts to education will also mean:
 120,000 students across the nation will miss out on a computer in 2,300 schools and
670,000 computers that are already funded will become useless and out of date without
funding to upgrade and replace them.
 Over 1,800 secondary schools and 1.2 million students will miss out on a chance to
access a Trade Training Centre and start a trade.

AUTHORISED N.MARTIN for the ALP, 5/9 Sydney Ave. Barton ACT.

Julia Gillard and Labor Let’s move Australia Forward